Not One Less /

Not One Less is the engaging and delightful tale of a 13 year old emergency teacher's efforts to ensure that her class contains "not one less" student upon the return of their usual teacher from his annual holiday. Set in present day China, the film effectively portrays the economic divide between the country's rural and urban areas and also the lack of funding available to schools outside city boundaries.

A feature of the film was the use of non-professional actors. This lent a sense of authenticity and depth to the characters, something that is often missing from professional performances. A good demonstration of how maintining hope in the face of extreme difficulty can make a difference, I strongly recommend this imaginative and refreshing film.

To Live / Huozhe (1994)

If, like me you are a fan of Chinese Cultural Revolution family sagas or biography, this film will be for you. Having read both Falling leaves (Yen Mah, Adeline) and A Leaf in the Bitter Wind (Ye, Ting-xing), I was interested to see how the experiences of the Xu family (despite being totally fictional) compared. The film begins with Xu, Fugui (You, Ge)losing both his wife and the family mansion thanks to an uncontrollable gambling addiction and the unexpected repercussions that ensue.
The rest of the film focuses on the ingenuity employed and luck (both good and bad) experinced by Fugui and his wife Jiazhen (Li, Gong) as they try to raise their two children in the unstable confines of a new communist China.

At times poignant and joyful, this film provides another view of the Cultural Revolution and the way in which it impacted on the average family. Outstanding acting by both child actors adds to the realism of this film, although the true stars are the puppets.

See this website for more information.
http://www.lovehkfilm.com/panasia/to_live.htm